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There comes a time when you're over the brand name event hype and the larger crowds and you just want to bring it back to what it should be about; riding motorcycles and camping with new friends and old. Attendance numbers are meaningless. What you lack in vendors, sponsors, and over crowded conditions, you make up for ten fold under nature. Exchange everything negative for open roads, beautiful views, exploring the wilderness on two wheels, next to FREE camping (you still gotta be self sufficient but no one's going to be raping your ass for $75 to lay a sleeping bag on the dirt). Another great example of supporting grassroot events!

I first encountered Sideburn mate and perennial Dirt Quaker Pete Stansfield at the 2011 Hotrod Hayride, where he had ventured south to run his Triumph sprint/drag bike at the 1/8th mile Detonator Drags at Dunsfold in Surrey. He told me it was the first time the bike had been out since 1972.

I was racing my Harley 45 and drew Pete in my first race. Needless to say, he had blasted across the finish line before I completed my first (hand) gear change. The pic shows him warming the motor prior to changing to race plugs. I think he was running on methanol. I remember being impressed by his bib 'n' brace leathers and suffering severe tyre envy over that historic M&H slick. Yes that is a Dakota in the background and yes, the legend is true, it did race down the runway against Chief Detonator Langley Gifford in his 1940s period-correct '32 Roadster Hotrod, which was a lump-in-the-throat sight as they both thundered away into the late afternoon sun before the Dakota lifted off and banked hard right. Could it be the same plane that overflew Dirt Quake IV?

Pete also brought his sweet, hardtail pre-unit when it was in reverse-head incarnation. It has since seen Dirt Quake action, though in a different guise.

He raced Dirt Quake this year on a bone stock, low-mileage CCM flat tracker in the Street Scrambler class (I thought the stars on my leathers were neat, but Pete's were big 'n' GOLD)...

It's the annual lighting of Candy Cane Lane Ceremony, except we preempt it with a lawn party and surf music (provided by the awesomeness of The Royal Rats), pot luck (bring anything, booze is never frowned upon, but your strawberry vodka laced ambrosia salad is fine too), and all around Christmas festivities!

For details and more information, you gotta follow @wussarmy on the IG.

We had no idea that Snoopy/Joe Motocross would strike such a chord with people, but we've had loads of great feedback. One of my favourite responses is from Bob Metz, in Minnesota.

It's been a while. After seeing Snoopy I just had to send a pic. Shortly after stuffing my 750 Triumph Trackmaster through the fence my daughter colored this picture! It was 1978. It has hung on the wall of my shop since. Until later, John MetzSideburn 27 includes a feature written by Russ Gater of clothing brand TSPTR. Russ discusses the impact of the Peanuts on the morale of US troops in Vietnam, on equal rights for women and on the popularisation of motocross and minibike racing across the US. It's fascinating.

Read Harley R in the Isle of Man, loved the feature and wrote this...

Thanks Guys, that really was a great read! I found the Charlie Brown/ Joe Motocross piece particularly interesting as Peanuts was an integral part of my formative years and its increasing political awareness mirrored my own first steps into the big, bad world. I was too young to appreciate all the Vietnam/ WW1 parallels (living in the wrong country probably didnâ€™t help) but those increasingly cynical/ surreal cartoons, and my parentsâ€™ increasing dislike for what had once been a â€œfunâ€ daily strip, made a huge impact on me. Nearly fifty years later I can still remember every word from those comics â€“ I just have to see the first frame and my memory fills in the rest. Thanks again. HarleySee for yourself what all the fuss is about BUY SIDEBURN 27. G

Not exactly a single event by any means, Taco Moto Tuesday is a weekly gathering of like minded riders who head out in search of tacos, beers, and oral stimulation (yeah, we talk to each other. Novel idea aye?). Nothing says you have to attend every week, come out when you can and join the group. One things for sure, Don will order a hamburger and everyone else will usually opt for the tacos... There's more Taco Moto Tuesday pictures coming from specific events within TMT, but this small collection of photos is picked at random.

If you're going to ride 330 miles through the Taklaman Desert, known by the locals as the Desert of Death, without stopping for more than a pee and the odd snack, on a single speed, you might as well do it in a Dirt Quake T-shirt, right? Cheers Guy.

April 1st and 2nd, 2016 The Crick Out hosted by the Crick Boys out in the wasteland of Johnson Valley. Another serious DIY fun fest without charging for attendance, wristbands, or any corporate bullshit profiteering marketing agendas.